A lot of people are hosting your wedding: the bride, the groom, her parents, and his parents. How should your wedding invitation wording be arranged in this situation? Below are 4 simple “rules” to follow.

Decorum #1 – Those Doing the Hosting should be Listed at the Top of the Wedding Invite.

Anyone doing the hosting of the wedding should be listed at the top of the wedding invitation, before all the details, like time, day and place.

Decorum #2 – Wording Should Reflect that Both Sets of Parents as well as the Bride and Groom Inviting

Because the bride and groom’s parents and the bride and groom are hosting, they are doing the inviting. Wording in your wedding invitation should reflect this. For example, it should say something like “Mr. and Mrs. Johnson along with their daughter Kristen Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Brown along with their son Thomas Brown cordially invite you…” or “Joe and Annika Johnson along with their daughter Kristen Johnson and Ted and Rebecca Brown along with their son Thomas Brown invite you to share in the joy…” Anther popular phrase is “Mr. and Mrs. Johnson along with their daughter Kristen Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Brown along with their son Thomas Brown request the honor of your presence…”

Decorum #3 – Take Into Account the Marital Status of the Bride and Groom’s Parents
When the parents are married, it is traditional that the husband’s name goes first.

Here are some examples for married parents:
Mr. and Mrs. Johnson
Mr. and Mrs. Joe Johnson
Joe and Annika Johnson

However, if the parents are divorced, it is traditional that the mother’s name go first.

Here are some examples for divorced parents:
Annika Johnson and Joe Johnson
Ms. Annika Johnson and Mr. Joe Johnson

Decorum #4 – Name Position Matters
When multiple people are hosting a wedding, the bride’s side of the family is traditionally listed first, followed by the groom’s side.

If you want to see full examples of wedding invitation wording, check out our Wedding Invitation Wording page. On there we have a chart pointing you to examples of wedding invite wording based upon your family situation.